Linden Vineyards

Yesterday, I had to deliver some cheesecakes to Linden Vineyards, so we made plans with Jen and Dewi to meet us there and taste some wine. Here you see my three co-conspirators.



Our first move was to taste the featured library wine, the 1998 Rush River Red. I wasn't aware that Jim had used grapes from the Rush River Vineyard in Washington, VA, until today, but then I really only started seriously drinking Linden wines in around 2000. This red is a blend of 69% Cabernet Sauvignon and 31% Cabernet Franc and to me, the Franc seemed to dominate both the nose and palate. The wine still has good color and good fruit, but seems to be going the way of a southern Rhône, soft and sippable, wanting to wrap itself around a nice oxtail braise.

I've got to say that Linden always has my kind of lunch to go with a glass of beautiful wine. Here you see a bit of a baguette, so crisp and crunchy, that is just the perfect foil for wine and cheese. This outstanding bread is from the same company in north Jersey (formerly in NYC) that supplies all our bread at the restaurant. Outstanding.

Here's a photo of our feast featuring Virginia cheeses and summer sausage. Many of these same vendors supply us at the restaurant and it was Jim Law that turned me on to most of them. It is always great to taste Pat Elliot's great sheep cheeses. I would love to serve them at the restaurant, but as she and I have discussed several times, the price is just too dear.
After a glass each of the Rush River Red and the 2007 Hardscrabble Red, it was off to the cellar for the comparative tasting. I love the cellar tasting at Linden and it is well worth the price. There is nothing like trying two wines side-by-side to see the effect of vintage, terroir, or oak regime.
We started by tasting two 2009 Chardonnays side by side, Boisseau and Hardscrabble. The Boisseau is from Richard Boisseau's vineyard in Front Royal, on the west-facing hillside above the flea market on 522. Hardscrabble is the estate property on which the winery is built and it is largely east-facing and much higher/cooler than the Boisseau property.

And this site difference is easy to discern. The Boisseau has bigger, much more tropical fruit and much less acidity. The 2009 Hardscrabble is what we are serving in the restaurant right now and so I am very familiar with it and its crisp acidity ("sappy green apple" to quote Jim). You can see from the prices in the photo above how Jim values these wines. I agree. The Boisseau wine is interesting technically in that it is a good demonstration of hot site chard, but it is not my cup of tea. [During the cellar tasting, Ann and I met fellow blogger Jane from The Borrowed Abode; to the left in the picture.]

Next came two of my favorite reds right now. I've had both of these wines within the last two weeks, so there was no surprise in this pairing of 2006 versus 2007 Avenius Red, both of which come from Shari Avenius' property just to the north of the Hardscrabble property. Her exposure is more northerly and the site a bit higher than Hardscrabble and the wines that come from her property appeal to me because you can taste the minerality coming from the shale on that site. Today, these largely Petit Verdot blends are no contest for each other. The 2006 is at peak form and I find it to be beautifully balanced. I'm thinking it will not get better from here, though it will likely remain in form for a few years to come. In tasting the 2007, which as any student of Virginia vintages will tell you was the hottest and most intense vintage ever here, I found it still to be very fruit forward. I'm thinking another five years in bottle will not hurt this wine and I'm excited to see how it evolves as the fruit starts to drop off.

The third pairing was of dessert wines, the 2003 versus 2006 Late Harvest Vidal. I have tasted a lot of each of these wines but never together before. The 2003, which if you're a student of vintages you will know was the worst ever until 2011, is in perfect condition with its apricot/peach/pineapple nose blooming all over the cellar. The 2006 by contrast is still very closed and much less tropical in nature. Both were paired with a gorgonzola, lavender, and thyme savory cheesecake made by yours truly. These cheesecakes were the reason we were at Linden today. Despite the random snowflakes, it was a wonderful day with great food, great wines, and great friends.